WOMEN: GENDER DIVERSITY AND EQUALITY

Lessons for my younger self: Test boundaries, team with others

"The most important thing is to reach out to people to ask for help, rather than shut down."

My story’s about being able to learn from both the highs and lows of life.

My own happiest moments—the birth of my children, promotions at work, achieving cherished life goals—have sustained and inspired me in my personal and professional life. I’ve been so very lucky.

But in every life a little rain must fall.

In terms of the lows—at one point I endured multiple bereavements of close family members. At the time it was impossibly tough. Sometimes I didn’t think I’d be able to get through it.

But I did.

What I learned is that the most important thing is to reach out to people to ask for help, rather than shut down. Not only does this help you, but it helps you be more empathetic to others in the future.

Recognizing you’re in a bad place is vital. It’s not a weakness to ask for help. Nobody is an island. Everybody needs support both from work colleagues and friends and family.

Sometimes it has to be baby steps. You need to recognize that sometimes you’re not in a position to make giant leaps. Slow progress is good progress, and being in a better place today than you were yesterday, that’s how we grow.

The advice I’d give is simple: Having a goal, and then working out what the steps are to achieve that goal is the key to success. Be creative, accept that everything’s not always going to be plain sailing and always be courageous.

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